BETTY BLUE EYES Comes to Scarborough Stephen Joseph Theatre Next Month

Scarborough Theatre Company brings its joyous new production of Betty Blues Eyes to the town’s Stephen Joseph Theatre next month.

Based on Alan Bennett and Malcolm Mowbray’s hilarious 1984 film A Private Function, Betty Blue Eyes is filled with eccentric characters and toe-tapping songs from Stiles and Drewe. This very British musical with a Yorkshire heart can be seen at the SJT from Thursday 12 to Saturday 14 October.

It’s ration-fuelled 1947, and belts are being tightened in Austerity Britain. The government claims there will be ‘fair shares for all’ but in this Yorkshire town, local officials seem to be getting more than their own fair share. The only bright spark on the horizon is the impending marriage of Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip.

The story centres around Betty, an adorable pig, who is being illegally reared to ensure the local dignitaries can celebrate the Royal Wedding with a lavish banquet while the local population make do with Spam.

George Stiles and Anthony Drewe are no strangers to the SJT, having premiered their musical Honk! there in 1997. They have since become one of the UK’s best musical theatre exports, having written the new songs for West End runs of Mary Poppins and Kipps: The Half A Sixpence Musical.

Alex Weatherhill, Artistic Director of Scarborough Theatre Company, who is directing Betty Blues Eyes, says: “I am so looking forward to bringing this brilliant musical to the town for the first time. We’re giggling all way through rehearsals – how could you not with an Alan Bennett script, a maypole-dancing meat inspector and a pig trying every which way to upstage everyone in the company?”

Betty, the pig at the centre of the story, is brought to life by Dawn and Lee Threadgold of Animated Objects theatre company, who have made the puppet and workshopped it with ‘Betty Handler’, Amy Morley.

“I wasn’t quite sure how to take being asked to play a pig,” says Amy. “But she has such sparkly blue eyes, how could you not fall in love?”

“Part of my wish for the group is to keep welcoming new folks and I am delighted to say we’ve found two experienced gems for this show, Gemma Helliwell and Glyn Brigham, who play Joyce and Gilbert Chilvers, are new to us, but have a wealth of performing history behind them,” adds Alex.

They are joined by other new faces, and some familiar to those who have seen Scarborough Theatre Company’s recent hit productions of The Addams Family and The Hunchback of Notre Dame: Alice Ashby, Evie Blakey, Katie Buttner, Paul Buttner, Connor Canvess, Emily Cole, Sarah Cox, Chris Curtis, Bob Gibbon, Anita Hill, Dominic Hulme, Amy Hunter, Rachael Hutchinson, Kathryn Irwin, Tilly Jackson, Claire Jones, Keagan Jones, Amy Morley, Pauline Newman, Robin Newman, Martin Richardson, Chiela Robertson, Charlie Sheader, Julie-Anne Smith, Louise Stanway, Myrrhine Taylor, Janet Thompson, Lydia Trotter and Hilary Watts.

The Betty Blue Eyes book is by Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman with music by George Stiles and lyrics by Anthony Drewe.

The director is Alex Weatherhill, choreography is by Stephanie Dattani and the musical director is Andrew Davison.

Betty Blue Eyes can be seen at the SJT at 7.30pm from Thursday 12 to Saturday 14 October, with a matinee at 2.30pm on Saturday 14 October. Tickets are available from the box office on 01723 370541 and online at www.sjt.uk.com

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